The biggest football stars gathered in Dubai for the Globe Soccer Awards on Sunday and Cristiano Ronaldo was crowned as the beautiful game's "Player of the Century." The prize was in recognition of Ronaldo's impressive performance in the last 20 years, allowing him to edge out chief rival Lionel Messi.
The Portuguese superstar won the honor as he celebrates his two decades of playing professional football. The striker said he is taking home the award "with so much joy and pride."
In the same gala, Robert Lewandowski was declared as "Player of the Year," which came following a similar recognition from FIFA. The Bayern Munich ace emerged as the top goal scorer in Europe last season and his sterling performance was instrumental for his club winning the Bundesliga and Champions League titles.
Likewise feted by the award body was Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola. The Catalan coach got the nod for winning league championships in La Liga, Bundesliga, and the Premier League. Guardiola also has two UCL titles.
Yet the man of the hour was no doubt Ronaldo, whose campaigns for Portugal, Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus earned him accolades that likely convinced the award body he is more deserving than Messi, who has stayed with Barcelona all his professional life so far, according to Goal.
The award is handed out based on popularity votes and it was understood that Ronaldo was originally to take the honor given to Lewandowski. However, the Portuguese thought that his Polish counterpart deserved the recognition a lot better considering the achievements garnered by his German side during the last campaign.
Bayern secured a treble last season but the feat was even more impressive due to Lewandowski's prolific scoring run for the Bavarians. He would have been the favorite to win the 2020 Ballon d'Or had the award was not scrapped.
In any case, Ronaldo seemed only too happy to give credit where it is due as The Sun reported that the Juve star played a part for Lewandowski to get the prize. The publication said the Portuguese got the greatest number of votes but insisted the Bayern star not getting the honor would be most unfair.
It appeared that for him, being acknowledged as the best in the last twenty years is more than enough. Ronaldo even admitted that the latest recognition further convinced him to keep playing.
"It is an exceptional achievement. It gives me the motivation to move forward ... I hope to still be able to play for more years," the Juventus forward was reported as saying.
The 35-year-old striker continues to impress and is among the top scorer in Europe. Ronaldo said he plans to play until he is 40 and his form appears to support such a goal.
